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Footwear, textiles, dairy and meat are some of the goods that have potential to be exported to the Caribbean island.

According to Alfredo Lacayo CEO of Centrolac and the person who led a trade mission of the Chamber of Industries of Nicaragua (Cadin) which traveled to Cuba on May 13, in the case of the dairy industry, the next step is to apply to the Ministry of Health of Cuba to send staff to inspect the Nicaraguan plants in order to certify them for export to that market.

Given the rise in the price of milk, the government will present to the sectors involved a proposal to import milk powder in quantities and origin to be determined.

The Minister of Development, Industry and Trade (MIFIC) Orlando Solorzano, said his proposal provides that the same processing plants that importmilk powder will then sell it in liquid form. In all cases, some of the imported powdered milk will be marketed directly through the Nicaraguan Basic Food Company (ENABAS).

The Ministry of Commerce has authorized the importation of 68 million pounds of onions and 58 million pounds of potatoes from Costa Rica and the Netherlands.

In order to supply local consumption for a month authorization has been given for 10 million pounds of onions from Costa Rica and 58,000 quintals of both potato and onion from the Netherlands , said Orlando Solorzano, Minister of Development, Industry and Trade (MIFIC in Spansih).

The government will take further action to authorize the importation of duty free chicken in order to curb the rise in prices.

So announced the Deputy Minister of Industry, Development and Trade (Mific), Verónica Rojas, "Will we have to take other measures? Possibly. That will depend on how things develop over the next fifteen days."

This increase is the result of negotiations between representatives of the private sector and government authorities in Taiwan, which has been buying Nicaraguan sugar since 1998, now under the free trade agreement signed this year.

The Purchase of 20,000 tons from abroad could reduce the price by up to 48%.

In order to increase the supply of corn and lower prices, the government has decided to authorize the importation of grain from countries with which they have trade agreements such as the U.S. and Mexico.

The challenge seeks to reverse authorization given for the US company Cargill to take over Pipasa.

Nicaragua's institute for protecting consumer rights presented the challenge, arguing that if the merger goes ahead, the resulting company will control 61% of the Nicaraguan poultry market, enabling it to undercut its competitors and force them out of the market, after which nothing would stop it from increasing prices at will.

FTAs, a skilled workforce and the proximity to strategic markets are among the attractions for investors in Nicaragua.

In its April 2009 issue, Revista Summa will publish an exclusive interview with Javier Chamorro, Executive Director of ProNicaragua which is directed at getting to know the advances in attracting foreign direct investment and the plans that will be developed during 2009.